Animorphs Perspectives: The Illusion
by SD
Summary: Animorphs Book 33 from Rachel's perspective - Part 1. For those who begged to see the rest of this story, my good buddy, Ash9, wrote it for you: storyid 1404568


Author's Note: Animorph books are mostly from one character's point of view. I've always wondered what other characters (besides the narrator) were thinking. So, I decided to get inside someone else's head and write "Animorphs Perspectives". This one happens to be book #33, The Illusion, from Rachel's perspective. ****************************************** Animorphs Perspectives

**#33 The Illusion**

**by K.A. Applegate**

**Adapted by S.D.**

Chapter 1

My name is Rachel.

I was getting slightly annoyed. I was at a school dance, and my "date" wasn't paying any attention to me. He was just kind of standing there with his arms hanging by his sides as he stared out into the room. People kept giving us strange looks, and one guy even got mad because he thought Tobias was staring at his girlfriend. I was pretty sure he hadn't even noticed the girl. He was probably off in his own world thinking about whether he wanted to catch a mouse or a rat for dinner. Or maybe he was thinking about how much he wished he could be out flying.

By now you're probably wondering why my date should be thinking about catching rodents for dinner. Well, let me tell you. We are not an ordinary couple.

It all started around the time I first met Tobias. He was new at school, and my cousin Jake had rescued him from these big jerks that love to pick on people with brains. I guess they're jealous, since they have no brains themselves. Anyway, I had seen Tobias around, but never really talked to him. One night, after hanging out at the mall with my best friend, Cassie, I ran into Jake, his best friend, Marco, and Tobias. Jake and Marco had been playing video games at the mall arcade, and ran into Tobias afterward. We all decided to walk home together, through this abandoned construction site near the mall. What happened in the construction site changed our lives forever.

A space ship crashed right in front of us. I know what you're thinking. This girl is insane. You could be right. I wonder about that sometimes. Maybe I'm crazy; maybe all this is just in my head. But the truth is, it's real. A space ship crashed in the construction site. An alien, who called himself an Andalite, told us that earth had been invaded by a race of aliens called Yeerks. The Yeerks are parasites that, in their natural form, resemble slugs. They are blind and deaf, and unable to live outside of their Yeerk Pools. However, they have this amazing ability to connect to the brains of other species, and control them. They are doing this to the human race.

They crawl into the person's ear, interface with the brain, and completely take control of that person's body. The human is still conscious, they know what is going on, but they can't do anything about it. All they can do is watch helplessly as the Yeerk controls every move they make, every word they speak, and every expression on their face. It's downright evil.

The Andalite, a prince named Elfangor, gave us a power with which to fight the Yeerks. The power to morph. We can become any animal we touch. I have been an elephant, a grizzly bear, a dolphin, a fly, and an eagle, even a cockroach. Together with my friends, I fight against the Yeerks. Five kids (and Elfangor's little brother) trying to slow the invasion of earth until the Andalites can return and take them down.

The downside to this power (besides the fact that we have to fight a war when we should be studying and learning to drive) is the two-hour time limit. If you stay in a morph for two hours, you are stuck in that morph. That's what happened to Tobias. He was trapped as a red-tailed hawk. He was stuck that way for a long time. Until a vastly powerful, and unpredictable, alien called the Ellimist gave him back his morphing powers, including the ability to morph his own human body.

So, most of the time, Tobias is a hawk. He lives in a meadow near Cassie's farm, and catches rodents for food. He does a lot of our spying for us while we're in school. It's supposed to take his mind off the fact that he can't go to school anymore. And most days, I go flying with him after school. I like spending time with Tobias. And flying with him is one of my favorite ways to spend an afternoon.

However, there are times when Tobias morphs his own human body. Too few times, if you ask me. And tonight was one of them.

I looked at him. He looked extremely unhappy to be there. Being at a dumb school dance with me probably can't compare to soaring the thermals. Thinking about that just made me even more upset. I wish I could make him happy. But the only thing that seems to make him truly happy is being a hawk. Tough for me, since just seeing him there, as a human, made me incredibly happy. And dancing with him would definitely overflow my cup of happiness.

He glanced over at me and gazed into my eyes. His gentle brown eyes held my gaze, and I wanted so desperately to ask him to dance with me. I swear, he must be able to read my mind because as soon as I thought about asking him to dance, he looked away with a pained expression in his eyes.

So, as I was looking around the gym, feeling more and more sorry for myself, and getting more and more angry, the inevitable happened. Just when you think things couldn't get worse, they always do. In this case, the thing that made everything worse happened to be Marco.

"Let's kick it boys and girls!" Marco had this high-on-life look on his face, and was doing some goofy-looking dance, obviously enjoying the dance to the fullest. That made me even madder. How come Marco was having more fun than me? It just wasn't natural.

"Some kind of chemical imbalance, Marco?" I asked as I gave him an evil look.

He just grinned like an idiot. "Hah. Hah. And also, a bonus, hah. This is a natural high. A good music high. A lots-of-girls-in-short-skirts high. A people laughing high. This is fun. Do you two remember fun?"

I glanced at Tobias, who also looked at me. He looked away again. This time, he stared at the clock. _Oh no_, I thought, _he wants to leave already_. My mind was racing, _what could I do to make him like me more than flying?_ Another thought kept pushing it's way into my head; one I didn't want to even acknowledge was there. _I wish he would just stay human. No, that's too selfish Rachel. You know he wants to be a hawk_. Marco interrupted my internal battle.

"You need to cut loose, my friends," he was saying meaningfully. "It's all about rhythm. You gotta commune with the rhythm, step inside the beat." Dancing lessons from Marco, the last thing I needed or wanted right then.

"Look, Marco, go work your magic somewhere else," I knew I was snappy. Marco picked up on it right away.

"Okay. Which proves what I've always known: Neither of you is any fun, and together, even less. I'll just have to find my own party. Later." He slid away into the mass of dancing, happy people. Why couldn't Tobias and I be happy like that?

"Listen, Rachel, I have to get going." Tobias dropped his voice, "Time's running out."

"What do you mean? You have a full," I glanced at the clock, "well, at least fifteen minutes left. You saying you'd rather be sitting up in your tree, watching owls eat nocturnal rodents, than be with me?" I knew I was being nasty. I knew it was wrong. But I was so frustrated he's lucky I didn't just scream. I guess he knew that because he got even more nervous.

"Well, no, of course not. I mean, not exactly." Not exactly? What's that supposed to mean?

"What?" I asked.

"It's just all these people. The noise. This body …" He looked around. Was he trying to avoid looking at me?

"You mean your body. The body you're in now is your body, Tobias. It's who you truly are. Normally, naturally." I knew I was venturing into dangerous territory, but I couldn't help it. I wanted him to face the fact that he was human. He was born human; he had lived most of his life as a human. Why did a few months as a hawk change who he was?

He looked at me helplessly. He didn't answer. I could tell he didn't want to fight with me, so I offered him a way out.

"Just dance with me, Tobias. Please" A slow song started. I glanced across the room to see Jake and Cassie dancing with their arms around each other. I took Tobias's hand and pulled him out into the crowd of happy couples. He looked slightly panicked, but as I draped my hands around his neck, he calmed down. He put his arms around my waist, and I leaned my head on his shoulder. I actually felt him relax. I glanced at his face, and saw a look of happiness on his face.

As I gazed at Tobias, I noticed the clock behind him. He had less than ten minutes left in morph. I opened my mouth to tell him. _No! It's his responsibility. If he's worried about getting away and demorphing, he'll look at the clock. If he doesn't care, you shouldn't either. _I felt awful, I knew he cared, and I knew I should say something. But I didn't. I secretly hoped the ten minutes would go by without him noticing. I slipped back into the trance of the music.

Chapter 2

Suddenly, I felt Tobias get tense. He jerked away from me, squinting at the clock. He looked horrified.

"Oh, God. Rachel. Eight minutes," he whispered frantically. "I have to get out of here."

_NO! _I moaned in my mind_. Don't leave me Tobias! Don't leave me for the sky!_

"No, wait a minute. Stay." What was I saying? What was I doing? He looked at me, too panicked to realize my awful thoughts.

"Stay? Rachel, have you lost it? I have to find a place to demorph. Now!" He was struggling to stay calm, to not draw attention to himself. He walked quickly to the door, almost running. He rushed past Mr. Feyroyan, Jake's English teacher. I followed him, jogging to catch up.

He looked back at me, a look of fear on his face. Did he realize what I'd almost done? _It's his own fault_, my mind screamed. **_He_**_ should have been watching the clock_. What was I thinking?

"Wait up a second. Hey." I called out. I wanted to explain, but I knew I couldn't. He'd never trust me again. I had almost ruined his whole life. He stopped running; stopping in front of a bulletin board the Science department had put up that week. I hadn't had a chance to look at it during school, but, seeing Tobias staring at it, I looked it over. It showed several kinds of birds of prey, and gave information about their habits and life spans.

"Tobias, I want to explain…" I broke off as I read the caption beneath the picture of a red-tailed hawk. The letters blurred as my eyes teared up. "Longevity in the wild…A generous estimate: eighteen years." I couldn't take my eyes off the board. I couldn't look at Tobias. Eighteen years. How old was his hawk morph already? Ten? Fifteen? He could be eighteen already. He could die any day.

Tobias was staring at the floor. I walked over to him, got right in his face. I had to explain, tell him how I felt.

"Look, the fight is important to us all, Tobias. So important to you that you've given up everything human to be a warrior." What was I trying to say? "What am I even saying? You risk your life every day. I understand all that, I do. We're the same, you and me. Warriors." I paused, trying to figure out what I wanted to say, and how I wanted to say it. I wanted desperately not hot hurt Tobias's feelings, but if that's what it took to make him understand…

"But you've got to realize there's more. I'm not just a warrior, I'm a girl. I'm trying not to let myself be dragged off the cliff away from all normalcy, into this insane life we live. I don't like what it does to me, Tobias, and I need to be a girl again. I need a little bit of normalcy, okay? Not a lot, but some." I was almost crying, I pulled back from Tobias, trying to get control. I never get this emotional around other people. Why was I doing it now? Even then, in the back of my mind, I wondered if I was manipulating Tobias; trying to take up time, keep him in morph. But I couldn't stop. All this, it needed to be said. Once I started, it just kept coming in a flood, a torrent of pain and frustration.

"All the things we're supposed to live while we're in school, Tobias, you know, dances like this, nights out at the movies, walks on the beach. That stuff is passing us by. I want those things. We deserve them. And if you were human…"

"Yeah. If I were human. If." He cut me off. His eyes were hard and suspicious, more like a raptor than a human. "I need to go." He said flatly. He turned and walked quickly down the hallway. I just stood there and watched him go.

He knew. He knew I had tried to trap him in morph. But I hadn't done it on purpose. Had I? It was just a string of accidents. I never said to myself "I am going to trap Tobias in human morph". It just all happened…

As I was standing there in the hallway, putting myself on trial, I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. I looked up. It was Tobias. Still here? Still human? What was he doing? Why hadn't he gone back to his tree yet? Seeing the urgency in his step, I realized the back exit must be locked. Tobias was trying to get out the front door of the school. Then I looked closer and saw the shocked look in his eyes. He never really shows much expression on his face anymore, but his eyes give everything away. And I could tell something was definitely up. I crept to the edge of the hall to see what he was looking at. Chapman had Erek the Chee cornered; he was accusing him of smoking. As if a several-thousand-year-old android would care about smoking. Tobias slowly moved in my direction until he was close enough to whisper to me. Running into Chapman would not be a good thing for Tobias, besides being the Vice Principal of our school; Chapman is also a high-ranking Controller.

"Look, Rachel, I need your help." He looked up as Mr. Feyroyan called his name and started to walk toward us. The horrified look on Tobias's face broke my selfish thoughts of trapping him as a human. I thought fast, how can he get out?

Chapter 3

"Over the gate." I ordered him, grabbing his arm. "There's no other way. I'll hold off Feyroyan. Meet you outside." I looked him in the eyes and smiled, reassuringly, I hope. He dashed around the corner toward the metal gate that was blocking the exit. I looked up at Mr. Feyroyan, and put on my best "there's nothing going on here" smile.

"Was that Tobias?" The teacher asked me. I put on my dumb blond expression, and shrugged my shoulders. "I don't think so." I said airily. "Tobias moved away."

"No, you're wrong," Feyroyan said firmly, "That's Tobias, I'm sure it is."

Chapman had finished lecturing Erek, and noticed Tobias trying to climb over the gate. He and Mr. Feyroyan took off, trying to catch Tobias. I didn't know why Feyroyan was so interested in Tobias, but I knew Chapman had a reason. Tobias is the son of the Yeerk's greatest enemy, Prince Elfangor. But that's another story, I'll tell you some other time.

Anyway, as soon as Chapman went after Tobias, I went to find Jake. He was hanging out in a corner of the gym with Cassie and Marco. I pulled him aside and told him the situation. He told me to go keep watching, make sure Tobias at least got out of the building.

"He's really low on morph time," Jake said, as if I needed reminding of that. "There's a big possibility he won't make it in time." He looked at me closely. Did he know what I'd been thinking about? No, of course not. "If… if he can't demorph, don't bring him back in here. It's too dangerous. I'll go wait in front of the school. No matter what, keep him away from Chapman. If he manages to get out and demorph, try to tell him to come find me in front of the school. Erek gave me some bad news." Jake looked kind of sad and resigned. To him, it's important for Tobias to stay a hawk. Being trapped as a human would put him out of the fight, and Jake would lose one of his warriors. I could understand his perspective, but somehow, it seemed a bit ruthless, not something Jake would have done a few years ago. This war has taken its toll on all of us.

As I got back to the hallway, I saw Chapman walking back to toward the gym, shaking his head, and Feyroyan was just coming in the door. He looked disappointed, sad. I still wonder why he was so determined to talk to Tobias. Was he a Controller too? Or maybe it's because they seem to be very similar kinds of people. At least as much as I know Feyroyan. He kind of seems like the kind of guy Tobias would have grown up to be, if things hadn't happened the way they did.

I saw no sign of Tobias, and I didn't want to be caught where I shouldn't be, so I returned to the gym. I saw Cassie and Marco in the corner where they'd been with Jake earlier. As I arrived, Marco left. He was trying to talk to some girl who'd never give him the time of day. I was glad; I needed to talk to Cassie. She's my best friend, and I knew she'd help me figure everything out.

"Hey Cass. Where's Jake?" I tried to sound normal, nonchalant. But I knew she'd realize something was up.

"He went out to meet Tobias. Did you see him?"

"Tobias? No. I guess he got out the back door. Chapman was real disappointed." I knew what she would ask next.

"Do you know if he…got out in time?"

"I don't know. It was pretty close." I fought back the guilt that was surging through my heart. If he were trapped, it would be my fault. And a part of me hoped he was. A larger part than I wanted to acknowledge.

"Why was he so low on time? I thought he'd leave early enough to demorph safely." I knew Cassie wasn't accusing me, but it felt that way. I guess guilt sees everything as an accusation.

"He…didn't notice the time. He wasn't watching the clock." I tried to find some way to make it not my fault. There was no way. Cassie sat down on the bleachers, and motioned for me to sit beside her.

"Rachel. What's wrong?" Cassie knows me so well. And she's very good at reading emotions. I could never hide anything from her. Not that I wanted to. I wanted nothing more than to spill everything to her, and have her tell me it was OK. But would she do that? Or would she blame me? Cassie's my best friend, but she has a morality that takes precedence over everything, including friendship.

"It's my fault. I distracted him. I knew time was running out, but I ignored it. I wanted him to forget." I said it flatly. I was very good at hiding my emotions, and I knew that if I started to get emotional, I'd be bawling like a baby in a few minutes. I looked at Cassie. Was she judging me? Was she going to tell me how selfish I was?

"It's hard isn't it? When you just want to be normal, but his sense of duty comes above everything else. You just want to tell him to forget the stupid war, give it up, and be a normal kid again." Cassie looked thoughtful. I realized that she and Jake had a similar problem, even though they were the same species. It occurred to me that Jake wasn't spending time with Cassie right now either. He was busy with whatever bad news Erek had told him. She was sympathizing with me!

"But, Rachel, you have to think of his feelings too. And understand that he's having the same battle inside. Don't you think he wants to be normal?"

"Not enough to go through with it."

"Not right now. He's got the pressure of the war, his sense of duty to the cause. His father died to give us the chance to fight this evil. Tobias doesn't want that to be worthless. He wants to make sure Elfangor's death was for a good reason."

"Do you think, if we win this…" I began.

"_When_ we win this." Cassie corrected.

"When we win, do you think he'll …? " I needed that hope to hang on to. If nothing else, that would be a reason to fight. A light at the end of this dark tunnel.

Cassie sighed. "Rachel, there's more to it than just his duty to the war. Tobias…"

"Likes being a hawk better…" I almost said 'than being with me', but I quickly changed it. "than being human."

Cassie ignored my comment, and went on philosophically. "He never had any reason to enjoy being a human, his life sucked before he became an Animorph. And he was trapped within days of getting the morphing power. He associates his crummy life before with being human, and he associates the freedom and happiness he has now with being a hawk. It may take a while for him to realize he can be happy as a human." She paused a moment. "He may never realize it."

Cassie's psychoanalyzing was true, but sometimes the truth hurts. I was hurting. When I hurt, I tend to get mad. When I'm mad, I tend to lash out at whatever's closest. Cassie was closest. She took it calmly, and waited for me to finish venting.

"So what then?" I practically yelled. "I just sit around and wait and hope for something that may never happen? Should I give up on him? I can't imagine that, but I also can't imagine spending the rest of my life being with him for two hours at a time."

"There are no easy answers, Rachel." She said softly. "Just be there for him. Be patient and let him know you care about him no matter what. Let him know you love him even when he's a hawk."

It was true. Every time that familiar shadow passed over me, and I looked up to see the bright red tail feathers, my heart jumped. I could stare into his hawk eyes and see his…soul… I guess, and that was what I loved. But it didn't really compare to when he was human. When he smiled at me, or held my hand, or looked at me with those eyes that made me melt all over.

I but I knew that I still loved him as a hawk. Or any form he was in, really. On the rare occasion that he actually morphed with us, I always knew which dolphin or seagull or cockroach was Tobias. And I wanted to be the dolphin or seagull or cockroach right next to him. The part of Tobias I loved had nothing to do with what he looked like on the outside. But that didn't mean that I wanted to marry a hawk. It did mean that I didn't want to hurt him. I didn't want him to be human if he couldn't be happy. More than anything I wanted to be the thing that would make him happy to be human. That would be my goal. To make him happy, not to manipulate him to do what I wanted, but to just make him happy. And to be happy with him, no matter what form he was in. Maybe in time, if I waited patiently, he could learn to be happy with me, as a human.

"Thanks Cassie." I said, giving her a quick hug.

"I'm not sure I helped very much." She said, shaking her head.

"Yeah." I said with a lopsided grin. "You did."

Chapter 4

I spent the night at Cassie's that night. We stayed awake for quite awhile doing the "girl talk" thing, you know talking about boys, specifically those who were currently driving us insane. The next day, Jake called a meeting to discuss whatever bad news Erek had brought him. I helped Cassie with some animals in her barn, a.k.a. The Wildlife Rehabilitation Center until the others started to arrive.

As I lounged on some bales of hay, trying to stay awake, Cassie continued tending some of her patients. Ax arrived in human morph, but demorphed to his normal Andalite form, which is completely _not_ normal. Marco and Tobias arrived a little later, Marco complaining about having to be awake on a Saturday morning after a dance. Tobias told him to get a life, since he'd already been hunting since 6 am.

I tried to focus on the discussion around me, to keep me awake.

"Let me get this straight," Marco was saying. "Erek got busted, not because he's an android walking the street in a hologram shield. Not because he's an informant for the 'Andalite Bandits.' But for smelling like cigarettes?"

"It was because Chapman knows he's a member of The Sharing," I put in. The Sharing is a front organization that recruits new hosts for the Yeerks. "Members aren't supposed to be troublesome. You know, more Boy Scouty than Boy Scouts. Especially because they have this big thing going on, this new community center. There'll be media, there. Have to watch that image."

Ax looked puzzled. *Igniting sticks of plant and paper?* He questioned. *Why is that such a serious offence?*

*Because cigarettes can kill you,* Tobias answered. *That is, if a golden eagle or a case of coccidiosis doesn't get you first.*

I glared at Tobias. I hate it when he reminds me how dangerous his life is. "So not funny." I told him.

"And because they become an addiction," Cassie offered.

"Like Marco and computer games," I added, glad to get away from Tobias's remark.

"Or Rachel and Calvin Klein clearance racks." Marco said, glancing at me slyly. It wasn't worth a comeback, so I didn't give him one.

Ax finally seemed to get the picture. *Ah. Yes. As we say on the home world: "A test of will may lead to wisdom; a loss of will breeds but defeat."*

"Hey, I saw that same thing in a fortune cookie once." Marco said.

I was getting fed up with all the small talk, my eyes were getting heavier and heavier every moment. "Where are Jake and Erek?"

*They'll be here in about five seconds,* Tobias informed us from his "security post" in the rafters.

"Hey, everybody!" Jake called as he entered the barn. "Sorry we're late, but Erek has breaking news. Listen up!"

I shook my head and sat up, hoping I could stay awake for the whole meeting.

"As I told Jake, we know the Yeerks are ready to test the AMR. But they don't have a test subject." Erek began. That woke me up. The AMR. Anti Morphing Ray. A weapon designed to force any morphed creature back to its natural form. Our worst nightmare.

*Why can't they use Visser Three?* Tobias asked. *You know, get him to morph the nightmare alien beast-of-the-day, then turn the ray on him?*

"They could if he were volunteering. Which he isn't." Erek continued. "Probably because there's a chance the ray could prove fatal. And there's a possibility that a feedback effect could blow the weapon up."

"Well, there's a hopeful thought, at least." I said, trying to be cheerful.

"Man. So you're suggesting they want to test the AMR on one of us?" Cassie asked as she finished her work and joined the rest of us on the hay bales.

Eric nodded. "The next time you make an appearance, I believe the Yeerks will do everything in their power to capture you. Or failing that, at least fire the weapon at you."

"Well then," Marco said philosophically, "we just won't get caught. We won't let them see us. Or hear us. Or smell us…"

"Or will we?" Jake interrupted.

I looked at Jake and raised an eyebrow. What was he thinking?

"Look," he said, "on the way over, I started thinking."

"Had to happen sooner or later," Marco said in a stage whisper. No one laughed.

"Anyway, I was thinking, maybe that's exactly what we should do: Let the Yeerks capture one of us. Provide them with their test subject. Me, for instance. I let them take me prisoner. The rest of you follow secretly. They'll lead us straight to the AMR. Exactly where we want to go. In a position to destroy the weapon."

It made sense. But it was a horribly risky thing to do. Marco, ever the pessimist, spoke up.

"I'm just going to ask this once. Are you insane? Jake, dude, think about it. Not that I should even be considering the details of a scheme as idiotic as this one, but what happens if we don't get there in time? If they drag you off and we can't trail you because we get held up by, oh, I don't know, a few dozen Hork-Bajir and a small army of Taxxons? The Yeerks get to use the AMR on you. And assuming it doesn't kill you – and that's assuming a lot – you know what they'll get when they forcibly demorph you? A human kid. Kiss our cover good-bye. Kiss us good-bye."

I shook my head. We couldn't just hide and hope the Yeerks would give up on the AMR. We had to do something. But I wasn't about to let Jake get captured by Yeerks either.

"Yeah, it's dangerous. But I say we do it. Jake just isn't the one to go. You're too important, Jake. We need you planning the attack on the AMR. So I volunteer."

Jake raised a hand, as if he were going to argue. But Ax spoke first.

*Prince Jake, Rachel? I if I may say so, I believe the only logical answer is for me to go. I am Andalite, after all. Should the AMR prove successful and the Yeerks are able to demorph me, they will get what they are expecting: an Andalite.*

Ax had a point. And anyway, we were hoping to destroy the weapon before the Yeerks had a chance to use it on anyone. Marco seemed to agree.

"Makes sense," Marco said. "I mean, given that we're even talking this way, like we'd do it."

Jake nodded, but he and Erek remained strangely quiet. What did they know that they weren't telling us?

"You could die, Ax," Cassie said forcefully. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Ax did his best "Mighty Andalite" pose, and looked at us firmly. *I am sure.*

"We don't even know where they're keeping the AMR," Jake said. That really threw me. Why was he suddenly reluctant to set the plan? Was he looking for some other answer? Everyone else looked just as puzzled as I felt. This just wasn't like Jake. Unless he had another plan in mind. But what?

*Guys. Wait a minute.* Tobias said, interrupting my thoughts.

Jake glanced up at Tobias who was gliding from the rafter to the floor. "What is it?" He asked, with expectation is his voice.

Tobias landed in the middle of the group, with the sun shining on his feathers, looking ethereal.

*It's me.* He said. *I'm the one who has to go.*

Chapter 5

I glanced at Jake. The look in his eyes told me that he agreed with Tobias. But I didn't know why. Why send Tobias? I thought we wanted them to find an Andalite… No, that wasn't right. It would be better if they _didn't_ get an Andalite. If they got an Andalite they'd know the AMR actually worked.

Tobias explained. *Look, they turn the ray on Ax in morph, right?* I said. *If it works they get an Andalite. And they get proof the AMR works.*

I knew he was right. It made sense. And I wanted to kill him for pointing it out. How could he put himself in that kind of danger? I bit my lip, hoping no one could see it trembling with emotion. I couldn't even look at Tobias.

*I'm the one,* He repeated. *The Yeerks don't know hawk is my true form. They'll think hawk is a morph. They capture me in morph, so they think, as a hawk. They turn the ray on me, nothing will happen. I mean, they won't get an Andalite or a human. They'll think the ray doesn't work.*

My mind swirled. I felt like I'd swallowed a block of lead. I looked at Tobias, pleading him to back out of it. He _couldn't_ go. He couldn't risk himself like that. Too many things could go wrong. Too many. Tobias met my gaze with the steady glare of a raptor. But I could see past that. I could see he was sorry, but unwilling to change his mind. I looked away.

"You're right, Tobias." Marco said ironically. "Don't you wish you weren't?"

Jake made a face. He looked disgusted with himself. _You should be disgusted!_ I thought to myself. _You knew it would have to be Tobias. You just let him volunteer for a suicide mission!_ I glared at Jake, shocked, angry, and terrified that my once gentle cousin would single Tobias out for such a dangerous mission.

*Tobias is correct,* Ax said. *But the mission could last longer than two hours. To play the part convincingly – to make the Yeerks think you're an Andalite in morph – you will have to "demorph" to Andalite at some point, Tobias. I believe you will need to acquire me.*

I couldn't believe we were actually going to do it. Were we usually so willing to risk one of our lives, or was it that I only cared because it was Tobias? I knew the answer. I had been completely in favor of the plan when it was my own life on the line. Or Ax's. It was only the fact that it was Tobias that caused the doubts to flood my brain.

"The trick now is to choose the best time and place," Jake was saying. I'd been so lost in my own thoughts. Had I missed anything? "We have to act fast. But we want to be in control of the capture as much as possible."

I hadn't missed much, if anything. I determined not to let my emotions get in the way of doing my job. I was a warrior. The fate of the human race was at stake. My personal feelings couldn't change that. We had to do what we had to do.

"And it has to look credible," Cassie added. "I mean, the Yeerks have to believe it's a legitimate coup on their part. They can't suspect a setup."

"So, when?" Marco asked. I knew it was my turn. As much as an actor knows when his cues are, I knew that my line was next. I played my part, even though my heart wasn't in it.

"I say tonight," I said with forced enthusiasm.

"Tonight is the first night of The Sharing's three-day extravaganza with the new community center," Erek said, speaking for the first time in ages. He can't really be involved in our life-and-death decisions. His programming prevents him from being responsible for another being's death. He can only provide information; it's up to us to decide what to do with that information. So, if Tobias died, he would be in no way responsible for it. It must be an easy way to live.

Marco rolled his eyes. "Yeah, we saw the ads on TV. Yeerk-a-Thon. They built the new community center and now they're going to broadcast the dedication. Full media coverage. A huge deal. They're obviously drawing members from other states, going more nationwide."

"We were planning on being there one of the nights anyway," Jake said. "To identify new 'full members' and learn more about the extent of The Sharing's influence."

"I can't go tonight, not on such short notice," Cassie said. "My parents will be back by evening. I can't just disappear." I felt hope rise in me. Maybe we'd wait awhile. Maybe we'd have time to come up with another plan.

"We can't pass up this chance to get close." Jake said, killing my optimism. "I think we should risk it. The biggest night of the convention: awards ceremony. My brother's actually slated to get an achievement award. I bowed out earlier when Tom asked me to go. There's some big outdoor banquet, with tents and music and games. I'll tell him I changed my mind."

Marco jumped in, with his "A to B" attitude in full swing. "Yeah, Jake should go as himself. At an open-air function like that, you know Yeerk security will be out to nab anything that could be an Andalite in morph. The ants on the buffet table, the flies on the hamburgers, the birds in the trees. Jake's probably safest as a human, though not much help. If Erek's right, and they're looking to capture us, it means they'll be on the alert like never before."

"There's something else you need to know," Erek added. "We don't think the Yeerks built this community center out of concern for the community."

"I'm shocked," Marco said, laughing.

"We only have a few hints. Some vague information. But we think there is some underground construction there, probably a subterranean connection to the Yeerk pool."

We all looked at Erek. The Yeerk pool is the last place we like to go. But, the most likely location for the AMR.

"Oh, I like the sound of that," Marco said sarcastically. "Perfect. We can swing by the Yeerk pool and do a little damage on our way to save Tobias and blow up the AMR. Absolutely. Not a problem."

Jake's leader mode switched on, and he addressed us all. "Listen, everybody head home. Make contact with the parentals and meet back here early tonight if you can. We have work to do. And, um, Tobias?" He looked uncertainly at Tobias.

*Yeah?* Tobias sounded strained, but tough.

"Get some rest. This isn't going to be a picnic for you." Jake looked apologetic. I knew he was hating himself for asking Tobias to do this. And to tell you the truth? I was hating him too.

Chapter 6

Marco and Jake left together, as did Tobias and Ax. I wished I could go talk to Tobias. But what could I say? 'I'm sorry I tried to trap you in morph last night. Please forgive me. And don't go on this mission and get yourself killed.'? Instead, I helped Cassie finish up her chores in the barn and I packed my stuff and went home.

Usually, before a mission, I get really energized. Excited. But this time, I only felt dread and uncertainty. When I got home, I told my mom I was going to go to the award ceremony with Jake. Since, Tom's my cousin, it wasn't suspicious for me to want to see him get an award. She offered to drop me off at the community center, or at Jake's house, but I told her I'd rather walk. I wasn't in the mood to be around anyone.

I went down to my basement, where my gymnastics mats were spread out on the floor. I did some stretching, then worked on my floor routine. It's an intense routine that takes a lot of concentration. I was hoping it would take my mind off the mission for a while.

An hour later, I was exhausted, but my emotions had calmed down. You just can't do gymnastics with your mind bouncing all over the place. I've learned how to block out anything that's bothering me whenever I work out. It comes in handy for competition. I'm never nervous.

I took a shower then started to "get ready" for the awards ceremony. I had to get dressed up and everything for my alibi to be convincing. I only hoped I'd be able to retrieve my CK dress and shoes after the mission was over. I really liked that dress.

I walked over to Cassie's house with increasing dread. I tried to regain the focus I'd had that afternoon doing gymnastics. Mostly, it just made me feel more panicked. Cassie and Marco were the only ones in the barn when I got there.

"Where's everyone else?" I asked. Maybe Tobias had backed out, or Jake had called it off!

"Jake and Ax went with Jake's parents." Cassie said, as she pulled her sweatshirt off revealing her morphing leotard underneath.

"Your _bird-friend_ is outside learning how to be an Andalite." Marco said. I knew he was trying to irritate me. I don't really care about Tobias _more_ than anyone else in the group. I just care about him _differently_ than the others. But Marco likes to make it seem like I don't care about anyone but Tobias.

I gave him an evil look, but otherwise ignored his stupidity. "We're going to morph here?" I asked.

"Yeah," Cassie answered. "We're going to go as birds, find somewhere to demorph there, then morph to flies."

Good. I could leave my dress here. No chance of losing it. And maybe I'd have a chance to talk to Tobias on the way over. The three of us removed our outer clothing, and started morphing.

Now, usually morphing is a totally disgusting thing to watch, but this time, I was watching Cassie, and she has an amazing ability to make morphing look artistic, instead of insane. As I was shrinking and bird parts were appearing randomly all over my body, she had a beautiful feather pattern sketching itself across her skin as if drawn by an invisible hand. As the feathers became three-dimensional, her arms were stretching to become angelic wings, still human-sized. Her eyes grew round and turned from dark brown to a golden yellow. Then, the tail appeared and she began shrinking. By the time her beak and talons appeared, she was the normal size of an osprey.

We finished morphing and took off across Cassie's field. We saw Ax on the edge of the woods, near his scoop. My heart jumped a little as I realized it wasn't Ax. Ax was with Jake. Tobias. I wondered what it was like to morph an Andalite. It must have been extra-special for Tobias, since his father had been an Andalite. A sudden thought went through my mind, _What if Tobias decided to go back to the Andalite home-world after the war? _He was the son of Elfangor, a hero to the Andalites, he would be famous on their planet. I shook the thought out of my head. I needed to focus on keeping Tobias alive tonight. I could worry about his future when this was over and he was safe.

*Coming?* Cassie called to Tobias.

*Yeah.* Tobias replied. *Go ahead. I'll demorph and meet you there.*

So much for talking to Tobias on the way. We swung around and headed for the community center. We were pretty quiet on the way. Marco made a couple dumb comments, probably trying to aggravate me into arguing with him. But once he realized I wasn't going to, he stopped talking.

We demorphed behind the caterer's truck, and morphed to flies. As soon as we were done morphing, Cassie spoke to me, in private thought-speak.

*Rachel, I know you're worried. We all are. But the best thing you can do for Tobias right now is be strong. Do your job. If we all do what we're supposed to, this won't be hard. Worrying and second-guessing yourself isn't going to help us do this safely.*

Her words snapped me out of my pool of worry and back into reality.

*You're right,* I told her. *Thanks, Cass.*

*No problem.* She answered. She paused a moment. Then said, *Not that it's terribly important, but I think you should be saying something right about now…*

Oh yeah, my cue. I knew my job. I knew my lines.

*Let's do it!* OK, it was lacking in enthusiasm, but the familiar phrase somehow seemed to flip a switch inside me, and suddenly I was in warrior mode. The same focus that I used in gymnastics was there, pushing me forward, guarding me from the emotional baggage I'd been hauling all day.

Marco laughed a little. *Now that we have Xena's blessing, let's go see how close to death we can get and still survive.* It was Marco's usual pre-mission dark humor, and I let it roll over me, not bothering me. We'd done and said these things many times before, and we'd always come through whatever suicidal mission we'd been on. I was determined that it would be the same this time. We would emerge victorious, once again defying death. _All_ of us.

Chapter 7

By the time Tobias arrived, Cassie, Marco and I were spread out around the room, trying to figure out where we should stage our attack. We were hoping to overhear something about the Yeerk pool entrance. That would be the perfect place to attack. The perfect place for Tobias to be captured.

*Jake, Ax, I'm here,* Tobias called. I knew he was circling above the banquet, staying out of sight of humans, but close enough to see us. At least I hoped he was close enough to see us, since I had no idea where I was.

We'd followed the strongest smell of food to what we assumed was the buffet table. From there, we just hitched rides on people that came up for food, hoping we would hear some useful information.

*Ax-man! It's Tobias. You've got to get control of your morph. Right now. You can't make a scene.* Oh no. Ax in human morph with food around is a dangerous situation. And there was lots of food around here.

*Tobias?* Ax said wonderingly. * Oh Tobias! This cloud candy is superb. It is otherworldly. The way it melts on the tongue. It has mass, yet it is weightless…* Cloud candy? What was he talking about?

*Oh, boy.* Tobias sounded exasperated. I didn't blame him. *Ax, where are the others? You're supposed to be helping me guide them. They're in fly morph, don't forget. They can smell dog poop and see about six inches, and that's it.* A pretty accurate description. I was back near the buffet, skimming over the people who were getting food. How was I supposed to know who to follow?

I heard the emcee droning on about the wonderfulness of The Sharing. Suddenly, something went past me. Something that smelled very sweet. The fly wanted that sweet thing, so I buzzed over to it. I landed in the middle of what looked like a cloud of something sticky and sugary. The fly was in heaven. I decided to hang out there until Tobias could direct me somewhere useful.

*Help! Help!* I heard Marco yelling desperately. *Ax!*

*Marco? You in fly morph?* Tobias asked.

*Chocolate-covered, man. I'm in the chocolate fondue and they've turned up the heat! Buffet table! Buffet table! I can't get out!* He sounded pretty panicked.

*Fondue?* Ax asked. I began to worry. The last place we wanted Ax was near the fondue. He gets dangerous around chocolate. But he was the only person who could get Marco out.

*A warm pot of chocolate.* Tobias said trying to describe fondue. *Liquid. Brown.*

Marco was still panicking, yelling. Maybe if I got him talking, he'd calm down.

*Marco,* I said. *What exactly are you doing in the fondue?*

*Exactly? Well… I wanted to see if it would still taste good sucked up through a fly mouth. You gonna help me or do you just want to bust me?*

*Let him get eaten,* I told Tobias. The sugar cloud moved just then, and I zoomed out, not wanting to get too far from the buffet table.

*Rachel, is that you?* Tobias asked. As if I knew which fly he was looking at.

*Could be, how would I know what fly you're looking at?* I shot back. *I was just in the middle of this big cloud, sticky and sweet and…* I was suddenly very frustrated that we were so disorganized. *Where's Cassie? Where's Ax? Man! Five minutes in and we're all messed up.*

If we were going to succeed at this mission, we were going to have to get it together. This was not the way to pull off a deadly mission.

*I'm fine,* Cassie spoke up. *At least, I think I am.*

*Okay, that is you, Rachel,* Tobias said. *Just follow the cotton candy. It's Ax. The sticky cloud.*

*Is there some reason you think I'm not fine?* Cassie asked anxiously.

*Cotton candy?* I mused. *Huh? What is he doing eating cotton…Oh, never mind.*

I followed Tobias's directions and landed on Ax's shoulder, near the cotton candy cloud.

The emcee was still talking, but paused as the audience began to applaud.

*What do you see?* Cassie pressed. *What's the matter?*

*Nothing, Cassie. Tom's getting his award.* Tobias was still calm. *Ax-man. Careful grabbing Marco. Cassie? Are you near Jake?*

I wondered how he could stay so calm when he knew he'd be risking his life within a few hours. Somehow, though, he was in complete control, giving us all directions. It must have been driving Jake crazy. Jake hates to not be in control of things. Not that he feels like he's better than anyone, he just feels safer when he's calling the shots.

Chapter 8

*Ax! Ax! You'll eat Marco!* Tobias didn't sound so calm now. Marco was even less calm.

*He will? What do you mean he'll eat me?* Marco's thought-speak was high and loud. *I'm on something! I'm moving! Hey! I'm… I'm…I'm dripping!*

Tobias didn't respond.

*I've dripped!* Marco yelled. *I…Okay, I'm off Ax's hands.*

Ax had his hands in the fondue?

*I'm back on the surface of the chocolate. Near the edge. Don't eat me! I'm serious: Do not eat me!*

*Use a strawberry.* Tobias advised. *Ax! Use a strawberry!*

This made no sense to me. Apparently it didn't make sense to anyone else either because we all said *What?* at the same time.

*It's what you dip in the fondue,* Tobias yelled, like we were all morons. *Ax, grab a strawberry! Use it to dip him out.*

I couldn't resist the opportunity. *Dip the dip!* I said, with a giggle.

*Okay, Ax, listen very carefully.* Marco said urgently. *Do not eat the strawberry. I repeat: Do not - *

*Guys,* Tobias interrupted. *Visser Three just arrived. In human morph of course.*

I felt a chill come over me. Just the thought of Visser Three made me angry. He is pure evil. No one said anything for a few seconds, so I spoke up.

*So, what's happening? I'm getting bored.*

*Cassie! Was that you?* Tobias yelled, sounding frightened.

*I'm okay,* Cassie said shakily. *Missed me. Fly reflexes. Very cool. It was close though.*

Had Cassie almost been swatted? By who? I flew away from Ax, trying to see something, hear something.

"A fly!" Someone bellowed near me. "A fly!" Was that Visser Three? Fly hearing is very strange, but I knew the voice was familiar.

*Where am I?* Cassie asked. *I'm not sure.*

"Such filthy insects. Allow me to…" Yes, that was definitely Visser Three. Had he tried to swat Cassie?

*Cassie? MOVE!* Tobias yelled. *Cassie? Are you clear?*

*Yeah. I think I'm in Jake's shirt pocket.* She laughed. *The Visser told Jake he hoped he didn't scare him. Jake said, "I don't scare easy."*

*That's our boy,* Tobias said proudly.

I saw the cotton candy cloud that was Ax move past me very quickly. I followed him and saw Jake pulling him by the arm. Jake said something quietly to Ax.

*Prince Jake says "Enough messing around, let's do what we came here to do."*

Chapter 9

What we came here to do. Turn Tobias over to the Yeerks. If you asked me, I thought we should have kept messing around and just forgot the whole AMR thing. But, with the fate of the entire human race at stake, not to mention the lives of my four closest friends plus Marco, I knew we had to do our job.

Jake and Ax lost themselves in the crowd, and I saw Tobias gaining altitude, trying to get a better view of the area. Cassie, Marco, and I continued our meager surveillance of the banquet area.

The awards part of the banquet was over, and everyone was just socializing and eating. It seemed so normal. It was hard to believe that the majority of these people were under the control of Yeerks. Most of the friendly, socialites were silently screaming or sobbing within their minds. I had a sudden flashback of our first trip to the Yeerk pool. All the screaming and sobbing that had nearly overcome me. It was here too, below the surface. It gave me chills just thinking about it.

*Thinking deep thoughts, Xena?* Marco rescued me from the nightmarish memories.

*Hmm? No. Have you seen or heard anything?* I buzzed around the nearest table, trying to look fly-like.

*I'm a fly. I can see about fifty gazillion pictures of the same thing in psychedelic colors, and everything sounds like an earthquake. What do you think?*

*Give me a break, Marco. It's not that bad.*

*True, the food in this room is like fly heaven. And scaring people is fun too.*

*Scaring people?* Cassie interjected. *Do I even want to know?*

*You hide just inside the rim of their glass,* He explained. *When they pick it up to drink, you walk out onto their nose. It gets great reactions from women and little kids.*

Cassie sounded exasperated. *That's just wrong, Marco. Besides, we're here to get information, not entertain ourselves at other people's expense.*

*You're such a party-pooper, Cassie.* Marco said sulkily.

I was getting keyed up. Hanging around as a fly when I could be stomping Visser Three was just annoying. I wanted to get on with the mission and get it over with. And do as much damage to the Yeerks as I could in the process.

*Anybody hear any mention of the Yeerk pool? Or the AMR?*

*Forget Cassie. You are the ultimate party-pooper, Rachel.* Marco grumped. *We're having a perfectly good time talking about nothing, and you have to bring up the Yeerks.*

Just then, I heard Ax's thought-speak in my head. *Tobias and I have located the entrance to the Yeerk pool.*

Chapter 10

*Great, Xena. You jinxed us. You just had to bring up the Yeerk pool, didn't you?*

*Shut up, Marco. Some of us take this seriously.*

*It's just because it's your bird-boy that's the bait this time. If it was me, you wouldn't care.* Now, I wouldn't want any of them to be caught by the Yeerks. Even Marco doesn't deserve that, but I wasn't about to let him know it.

*Yep. You're right, Marco. I'd even wrap you up, put a bow on your head, and give you to Visser Three as a birthday present. If I knew when his birthday was.*

*Thanks, Xena. I appreciate that.*

*Prince Jake would like us to meet at the area called the playground.* Ax said patiently.

*The playground?* Cassie asked. *That's sick. They put a Yeerk pool entrance in a playground?*

*We believe it is inside the tunnel component.*

*OK, Ax,* I said. *We'll be there in a few minutes. We need to remorph. Or at least, I do.* I was supposed to hide on Tobias when he was captured, find the AMR, and then get back to the others so we could go in, smash it, and rescue Tobias. Tobias had to stay with Yeerks the whole time. I hated that part. Who knew what they would do to him while I was bringing the others?

Cassie and I went and remorphed in the girl's bathroom. Marco waited outside, so we could go together to the playground.

*Why do girls always take so long in the bathroom?* Marco asked when we buzzed out. *And why do girls always go in groups?*

He paused a moment. *Never mind. I don't want to know.*

If I hadn't had compound eyes, I would have rolled my eyes at him. Instead I just said *Whatever,* and flew ahead of him towards the playground.

*Hey! Is that you guys?* Jake demanded.

*I don't know. If you're looking at three flies flying blindly through the cold night air, it's us.* Marco shot back.

*Fine.* Jake said tolerantly. *Hurry up. There's someone coming. It may be our way in.*

*What's your morph?* Cassie asked him.

*Owl. Ax is himself, hiding in the trees. Tobias is himself, staying out of view of the cameras.* Jake laid out the situation.

*Cameras?* Marco asked. *I didn't know I was going to be on TV. I would have worn something else.*

*Nothing would make you look any better.* I told him.

*It's Tasset. From the sporting goods store,* Jake said quietly. *One of our known Controllers. ID'd him at the Yeerk pool.*

*Okay, we'll follow him in,* Cassie said. *Just tell us which way.*

*Yeah.* Marco whined. *'Cause, see, we're blind down here.*

*You should see a row of square lights,* Jake directed us. *Those are the windows of the community center. Keep those on your left.*

We zoomed past the windows. *Okay, now I've lost one of you.* Jake said anxiously. *Never mind, got you back. Close up. Stay together. Drift a little to the right. Now just hover there.*

I hovered trying to make sense of the crazy images I got from the fly's compound eyes. I saw something swoop past me and land nearby. Tobias. I buzzed over to him. Cassie and Marco kept watching for Tasset.

*I see him,* Cassie said. *He's blue and green and there are about ninety pictures of him, but I definitely see him.* I couldn't see Cassie and Marco following the Controller, I landed on Tobias's back.

*Red lights, I think,* Marco called out. *I think maybe he popped open a hidden panel. Up under the slide. Possibly red light. Who can tell? You all know what fly vision is like.*

I did know what fly vision was like. So I knew how close Cassie and Marco must have been to the guy to see all that. I hoped they were staying away from his line of sight. We didn't need anyone getting swatted. The whole mission depended on the rest of us staying relatively safe so we could rescue Tobias later.

*Come into my lair! Moooah-ha-ha-ha!* Marco announced in a spooky voice. They must have entered the tunnel.

*Now we've got traffic.* Jake informed us. I didn't know what he meant until Ax spoke up.

*Prince Jake, I see additional humans approaching. I may have to withdraw.*

*Do what you have to do, but stay close for the big finale.* Jake said brusquely. *You may need to remove one or more of the guards. Marco? Where are you and Cassie? You're out of my line of sight.*

*We are right behind this guy's big butt,* Marco replied. *And we see light at the end of the tunnel.*

Marco thinks it's his responsibility to make jokes to keep us from getting to serious. But I was not in the mood for it. I tried to sound sarcastic as I said, *Good grief. This is so not the time for your feeble attempts at being funny.*

I know it didn't come off as light as I had wanted it to. Tobias could probably tell I was stressed. Cassie too. I just hoped Jake couldn't tell.

*He's not kidding,* Cassie said, sounding surprised. *There's an intense light. Although I'd say it's more toward the middle than the end. Looks like another control panel. Yeah. There! I'm landing on it! I think Tasset's punching in a code word, but . . . Yah! Whoa. He just punched whatever number I was sitting on.*

There was a strange sound I couldn't identify, and then loud thought-speak shouts.

*Ahhhhhh!*

*Yeeeeooooow!*

*Yee-hah!* That was Marco.

*There's something in there, all right,* Cassie informed us.

*With a serious pressure diff going. That was one heck of a ride!*

*Okay,* Jake instructed. *Back out. Cassie? Marco? You guys are done. Ax? Are you set?*

*Yes, Prince Jake. I am in place.* Ax answered. *There is one less guard.*

*Okay, me and Cassie wish you all luck, and we are motoring on outta here,* Marco said. Then he laughed. *The Yeerks have no respect for our intelligence, do they? Like we wouldn't know this was a trap? Like we'd think a sewer pipe in a playground was a sensible entrance for the Yeerk pool?*

I had to agree with him. *A setup. Bait. Maybe they figured that even if we sensed a trap we couldn't resist.*

*Yeah, and it turns out they were right,* Cassie said darkly.

*But there are two levels of security, over and above the guards,* Tobias said. *That seems meticulous, doesn't it? Code-activated panels under the slide and in the tunnel? If they want us in, why make it complicated? Not the easiest thing to infiltrate.*

That gave me an idea. *Unless we were to forget stealth and go with the old standbys.*

*What are those?* Tobias inquired.

*Force and surprise,* I said. As soon as the words were out of my head, I realized how dumb that sounded coming from a fly.

*You know, Rachel, * Marco said mockingly, *when you're in fly morph, talking ruthlessly about guerrilla warfare, and force and surprise and all, I just find it so exciting, and yet disturbing. You know? Like a Britney Spears video with tanks.*

*Well, okay, it's a trap,* Tobias said. *A trap is what we came for. Let's just get this over with.*

My head swirled. I kept hoping we would forget the whole thing. But Tobias was ready to do it. So I'd have to be ready too.

*Okay, Tobias. You ready?* Jake asked.

*Can't say I'm looking forward to it,* Tobias answered. *But, yeah.*

*Rachel?*

I tried to calm my nerves and muster my confidence. _Just like a gymnastics meet_, I told myself. Let's do this. *Me? Who do you think you're talking to? Bring on the ambush!*

I don't know if Jake bought it, but he didn't argue with me. I thought for a moment. I had to talk to Tobias about it. If something happened, I would hate myself for not talking to him.

*Tobias?* I said in private thought-speak.

*What is it? Do you want out?* His question threw me off guard. Want out? No way! I wanted to stay with him the whole time.

*No, of course not. It's not that.* I paused, trying to find the right words. *Listen. Um. You take care of yourself. I mean … be careful. Okay? Whatever happens? If it comes down to it, save yourself and forget the stupid mission.*

It all came out in a babble, and I wondered if he thought I was being sappy.

*I will,* He said flatly. Then with emotion, *I have a lot to lose.*

My heart, or fly equivalent, seemed ready to burst. That short, simple sentence meant all the world to me. There was a point when Tobias felt he had lost everything and there was nothing left worth living for. I remember once soon after he'd been trapped in morph when he tried to fly into a wall and then through a window. I had caught Tobias when he fell and Marco had broken the window with a baseball. He came to me later and told me he felt he was losing himself. Even before he was trapped he felt like he didn't matter. I remember before our first mission, we were discussing how we all had family to worry about.

_"Not me," Tobias had said. "It's true. No one gives a rat's rear about me."_

_ "I do," I'd told him ._

To hear him say that he had a lot to lose, a reason to live, filled me with joy. I was suddenly ready to complete the mission. I was ready to do anything for Tobias.

Chapter 11

*Everyone out. Everyone but Tobias and Rachel,* Jake ordered. *Ax? Be ready. I'm going for the lights.*

I could hear the electronic sounds of the security system below us.

Dee-deep. Dee-dee-dee-dee.

*Yeah, we're in it dee-deep, all right,* I said as I felt a huge gust of wind sweep over us. Then Tobias took off and I burrowed deeper into his feathers to avoid the buffeting breeze.

*Jake! Ax! Now!* Tobias yelled. We fell quickly as Tobias dove toward the tunnel.

*Hang on!* He yelled to me. I held on for dear life and Tobias pulled sharply to the right and flared. It was like an incredibly intense theme park ride. Except this was one ride that could easily get us killed.

*Ax! Go! GO!* Tobias shouted.

I heard someone yelling. "Andalites!"

*Now, Prince Jake!*

I wished desperately that I knew what was going on. That I could help in some way. But I hung tightly to Tobias's back. Suddenly, it was very dark. Were we inside the tunnel? Sounds! I listened carefully with my strange fly senses. I didn't know what it was.

*Are we in?* I asked Tobias.

*We're in all right. And we're not alone.*

Chapter 12

Not alone? Hork-Bajir! That was the sound, growling Hork-Bajir! The lights came on quickly, and I tried to see how many. The huge, menacing shapes were all around us, but I couldn't tell if there were four or forty.

"Only one of you? And in bird morph?" I didn't recognize the voice, but I was sure it was female. "Oh well. With one in hand, we'll soon catch the others."

A familiar voice spoke up. "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush," Vice Principal Chapman said.

"Shut up Chapman," the girl said. "You sound like some pun-spouting villain from a Batman movie." I had to agree with her, whoever she was. And I was glad for someone to put Chapman in his place.

"Yes, ma'am," Chapman stammered. "Excuse me, ma'am. I mean, Sub-Visser."

*Tobias, what's going on?* I asked. *Why aren't we moving? Put up a fight! Let 'em know you don't want to be here.*

I was keyed up, ready to get things done. *Come on, play the part,* I urged him.

I heard Tobias let out a shrill cry, one that would send chills down any human spine. He surged up into the air and flew at one of the nearby Hork-Bajir. He raked the monster's face and turned quickly, barely avoiding the slicing blades. I hung on tightly as Tobias put up a fight. Suddenly, there was a jolt and Tobias yelled.

*What?* I asked worriedly as we hit the ground.

*We're down. I …* He didn't finish.

"Didn't think we'd be waiting for you, did you, Andalite?" The sub-visser asked. "Well, here we are. Surprised? I hope so. I love surprises, don't you?"

Chapman laughed and the girl continued. "Did I forget to introduce myself? So sorry. I'm Sub-Visser Fifty-one. Second in command to Visser Three in this part of space. Call me Taylor."

"Her host name," Chapman explained.

"Shut up, Chapman!" Taylor ordered. Then she spoke to Tobias, "Nothing to say? Speechless? Come on, I've always wanted to talk to an Andalite. Trade banter with the high-and-mighty self-appointed lords of the galaxy. Do you think that by staying silent I'll somehow be convinced you're an actual bird?"

She laughed. "No, no, friend Andalite. We've seen the red-tailed hawk before, haven't we? I said, haven't we, Chapman?"

"Yes, Sub-visser!"

*I have nothing to say. I am a prisoner of war.* Tobias said, playing the part of an Andalite warrior.

"Oh good, it does speak," Taylor enthused.

Tobias began morphing. I could see his tail growing, turning blue. As the blade emerged, there was a strange hissing sound from above. Then an explosion. My skin felt like it was on fire.

*Ahhh!* Tobias yelled.

*Ohhh!* I echoed his pain.

The pain began to fade and was replaced with…nothing. I was numb. I couldn't move. I panicked.

*What's going on?* I demanded Tobias. *I can't feel my legs. Or my wings. I can't move!*

*She shot us with a gas or something. She got Chapman, too. And a half dozen Hork-Bajir.*

"Surprise!" Taylor laughed. "So sorry for you all. Looks like I'm the only one who remembered to take the antidote in advance. Oh, wait. Did I forget to tell you all?"

Her tone changed suddenly. "Gather up these fools. And pick up the Andalite filth, too. We have a special place all picked out for him."

I felt Tobias shifting underneath me, I willed myself to hold on, but my legs were useless.

*Tobias! I'm losing my grip! I can't hold on!*

*Rachel! Try to demorph!* He sounded terrified. *Now! Do it!*

*I can't, they'd see me.* There was no way out. I couldn't move, couldn't morph.

*You want to be trapped as a fly? Forget the mission! Rachel!* His fear went straight to my heart. I was overwhelmed by his emotion and my own.

*Tobias! I'm slipping off your feathers! I'm falling!* I would have started crying if I wasn't a fly. I hit the floor and lay there, sobbing within my head. How could we rescue Tobias if I was stuck as a paralyzed fly on the floor?

I heard Tobias as he was being carried away, *Rachel! Rachel! Demorph! If you can, oh God, demorph!*

Chapter 13

As they carried Tobias away, I lay on the ground hoping I wouldn't be stepped on or noticed. Feeling began to return to my fly body and as soon as I could, I buzzed off the floor and surveyed my surroundings.

Paralyzed Hork-Bajir lay all around me and showed no signs of movement. I took advantage of the situation and quickly flew the direction Tobias and I had come. I was already slipping through an opening into the tunnel when I heard the rumblings of Hork-Bajir moving below me.

I shot out of the tunnel, expecting them to come after me, but they didn't. No one had seen me. I was safe. But Tobias… it was up to me to be sure he was safe.

*Jake!* I yelled. *I'm out!*

*Thank goodness!* Cassie responded. *You've been down there forever.* She flew over me in owl morph.

*How long?* I asked, suddenly concerned about my morph time.

*You were below for fifty-seven of your minutes.* Ax replied.

*Fifty-seven minutes.* Good. I'd only been in morph about fifteen minutes before going into the tunnel. I still had forty-five minutes. *Wait. Where's Marco?*

Normally, Marco would be razzing Ax about calling them "our" minutes.

*For that matter,* I added. *Where's Jake?*

*Jake had to return to the banquet.* Cassie explained. *Marco is a fly in his pocket in case he needs to send a message. You should probably check in so they can stop biting their nails.*

*Well, I'm not sure I can reassure them much.* I told her.

*What do you mean?* Cassie asked suspiciously.

*Tobias and I were separated. I didn't see where they took him.*

*Oh my God. Let's find Jake.* She landed next to me to let me crawl onto her back. We took off and she zoomed over the banquet area. Ax followed in his raptor morph.

END OF PART 1

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings! For those who begged to see the rest of this story, my good buddy, Ash9 (author id=299855), wrote it for you (storyid=1404568)

For those who want to see more of this type... write it yourself. You have my blessing.


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